Palada was born in Zagreb and started to play tennis at the age of fifteen on the courts of the Neurological Clinic of the Faculty of Medicine in Zagreb. He was hired as a ball boy by the doctors of the clinic. His talent was discovered by doctor of rheumatology Drago Čop, later a Davis Cup captain and president of the Yugoslav Tennis Association. Palada began practising with "Star" racquets on a daily basis. He was a self-taught player and trained by playing squash alone.[4] He made his first international appearance at a Budapest–Zagreb inter-club match.[5] He began working as a state official in the meantime.[6]
Palada continued with good results in tournaments. He defeated many renowned players such as Giovanni Cucelli, Torsten Johansson, Philippe Washer, Władysław Skonecki, Lennart Bergelin, Billy Knight, and Jean Borotra. His roll of honour included trophies from Ostend, Saarbrücken, Lübeck, Dijon, and several others with partner Dragutin Mitić in international doubles tournaments. At the end of his successful career, Palada twice won the Yugoslavian title (1952, 1955), despite being over forty years of age. He retired from tennis in 1956 at the age of 44.[10]
Palada went on to a successful career as coach and teacher, transferring his rich experience to younger generations. He was later appointed the official selector and captain and trainer of the Davis Cup team of his country. Under his leadership, the team achieved significant success in 1963 by winning the King's Cup.[10]
Šoškić, Čedomir (2012). Тениски савез Србије Тенис без граници 1922–2012.[Tennis Association of Serbia, Tennis without borders 1922–2012](PDF) (in Serbian). Belgrade, Serbia: Tennis Association of Serbia. pp.273–279. Archived from the original(PDF) on 30 December 2013. Retrieved 25 December 2013– via tennispress.rs.
Secondary
"Norddeutscher Lloyd passenger list". die-maus-bremen.de (in German). Bremen, Germany: Chamber of Commerce and the State Archive of Bremen. 11 August 1939. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
